Pictured at the launch of a free tax support initiative for vulnerable groups in Galway are, from left: Eileen Ruane, Director of Services, Galway County Council; Elizabeth Keane, County Librarian; Prof Jonathan Levie, Head of School, J.E. Cairnes School of Business & Economics; Prof Emer Mulligan, Director, University of Galway Tax Clinic; Meliosa McIntyre, Skills for Life Co-ordinator, Galway Public Libraries; and Dr Maggie O’Neill, Tax Clinic Co-ordinator.
LONE parents and survivors of domestic violence in Galway are to receive free, confidential help with their tax affairs under a landmark new initiative launched this week.
The programme, called ‘Enabling Tax Literacy and Empowerment: Understanding Your Rights and Responsibilities’, is the first public tax education partnership of its kind in Ireland. It is being run jointly by Galway Public Libraries and the University of Galway’s award-winning Tax Clinic.
Designed to help people navigate the State’s increasingly digital tax system, the service offers one-to-one consultations with trained tax advisers and supervised student volunteers. It will be available at selected library branches, with the option of online support. Recruitment is being handled through Family Resource Centres, FLAC, INTREO and the library network itself.
“This marks a significant step forward in inclusive financial literacy,” said Eileen Ruane, Director of Services at Galway County Council. “Embedding tax education in trusted community spaces helps tackle financial abuse and economic exclusion while strengthening libraries’ role as hubs for lifelong learning”.
County Librarian Elizabeth Keane described the programme as a way of helping people “regain control over their financial lives in a safe, supportive environment. This project is about more than taxes, it’s about empowerment. By bringing professional tax guidance into our libraries, we are helping lone parents and survivors of domestic violence reclaim control over their finances, build confidence, and take ownership of their futures”.
Commenting on the partnership with Galway Libraries, Prof Emer Mulligan, Director of the University of Galway Tax Clinic, said the collaboration “extends the clinic’s reach into the community with real-world impact while giving students valuable experiential learning opportunities as future tax professionals”.
The project is in line with several national strategies on adult literacy, financial education and the Government’s Zero Tolerance plan on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. It also complements the Skills for Life programme under the national library strategy ‘The Library is the Place: 2023 to 2027’.
Earlier this year, the University of Galway Tax Clinic, Ireland’s first free voluntary tax clinic, won the Excellence in Education Award at the Irish Accountancy Awards for its innovative approach to tax education and public engagement.
Galway Public Libraries and the University of Galway say the pilot will serve as a blueprint for regional and national roll-out, creating a replicable model of inclusive financial literacy in safe, accessible community settings.
